On April 30, we held our Annual Meeting to discuss the past year, vote on new officers and approve the new budget.
Below please find our annual meeting ministry reports to update yourself on what’s happening in our church!
Children's Ministry Update
Dear CBC Family,
“Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. “ 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
I give thanks for God’s blessings over us in this past year. In the May children’s ministry report I wrote, “God willing I am looking forward to the summer for rest, renewal, reflection and a new beginning in September, with in person gathering!” God is good! His plan is different from mine. I give thanks to be in his perfect will.
We have our first in person gathering on July 11. For the summer time, in the children program, we have opened nursery and Little Kids Club (3yrs-5yrs old). During the service the children are invited to attend the worship time and are dismissed to go downstairs to the children program. Give thanks for the blessings children are in our midst. Some Sundays when we have enough volunteers, we will combine LKC and KC. I give thanks for the children ministry volunteers who stepped in at the last minute to serve our children.
It’s wonderful to see the children. They all have grown and changed so much. There was lots of laughter and joy in the children's room. I give thanks for the Zoom platform that helped us connect and build our faith community. Especially the connection we had with the children. It made the transition easy for the younger children to see a familiar face they had seen on zoom.
For the next six weeks as we continue in person gathering, we are also using the time to re-evaluate, re-do and re-launch the family discipleship. I give thanks for the summer in person gathering because it is a great transition to relaunch in September.
Although we are still thinking, praying and processing how our family ministry will continue in the future, I know for sure God is faithful and He will lead us to the direction that He wants us to go. I will continue giving thanks for his faithful presence in our midst.
Blessings,
Rahel
Black History Reading List
As we work our way through Black History month we are exploring the ways which God calls us to understand the suffering of our brothers and sisters, to educate ourselves, and to pray for change in our nation and our own hearts.
Black History Reading List
Curated by Bill “Doc” McLaurin, February 2021
Black History
The Souls of Black Folks by W.E.B. Du Bois
The Mis-Education of the Negro by Carter G. Woodson
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson
Law
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander
The Case for Reparations The Atlanic June 2014 Ta-Nehisi Coates
From Here to Equality: Reparations for Black Americans in the Twenty-First Century by William A. Darity and A. Kristen Mullen
Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson
Black Personality
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons For Our Own by Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Faces at the Bottom of the Well: The Permanence of Racism by Derek Bell
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Civil Rights
The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon
Black Skin, White Masks by Frantz Fanon
Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr.
Family and Classics
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
Fences by August Wilson
The Best of Simple: Stories by Langston Hughes
Our kind of People: Inside America’s Black Upper Class by Lawrence Otis Graham
The Street by Ann Petry
Education & Intellectual
The Crisis of the Negro Intellectual: A Historical Analysis of the Failure of Black Leadership by Harold Cruse
Ebony and Ivy: Race, Slavery, and the Troubled History of America’s Universities by Craig Steven Wilder
Countering the Conspiracy to Destroy Black Boys by Jawanza Kunjufu
Black Heroes
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglas
Up From Slavery by Booker T. Washington
Autobiography of Malcolm X: As Told to Alex Haley by Alex Haley
Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley
Black Sisters
Beloved by Toni Morrison
In Search of Sisterhood: Delta Sigma Theta and the Challenge of Black Sorority Movement by Paula Giddings
Sports
Beyond A Boundary by C. L. R. James
Sweet Thunder: The Life and Times of Sugar Ray Robinson by Wil Haygood
Your Options Medical
This past Sunday we had the privilege of hosting Teresa Larkin from Your Options Medical to tell us about their work. They are particularly looking for fundraising and prayer support for a new clinic they are opening in Brookline.
Praise God for opening doors for this organization!
You can learn more by visiting their website:
Bible Reading Plan for 2024
Dear Brothers and Sisters at CBC,
Merry Christmas and happy New Year! It is with a great amount of satisfaction that I give to you the Bible reading plan for 2024. While a daily devotional in God’s word is not all that we need, it is certainly foundational for the Christian life. The central reality of the Christian is God – God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We are meant to live in fellowship with God; this is our purpose, this is our privilege, this is our destiny. Scripture and prayer are core disciplines for the life God works within us that we then work out: “work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:12,13).
I wanted to explain this plan and some of its nuances. First a brief explanation. You will be reading 4 chapters a day, 7 days a week. This will take you through the entire Bible once and Psalms, Proverbs, Matthew, Acts, Romans, and Hebrews twice. There are a few instances when you will read 3 chapters and a few when you will read 5. Most notably I tried not to break up the discourses in the book of Job so the schedule is a little uneven there.
Now for a full length explanation! The first column simply takes you through all the Psalms and Proverbs twice in the course of the year. The Psalms are the historic prayer and praise book of Scripture and reading a Psalm 300 days of the year will deepen your prayer life and worship. Proverbs is wisdom, much of it in bite size nuggets, and who couldn’t use a regular dose of wisdom?
The second column is the New Testament reading. It is one chapter a day for the year and it is presented in canonical order, that is, in the order you find in your Bible. The New Testament is completed as of September 17th so I added Matthew, Acts, Romans and Hebrews a second time to maintain the New Testament reading up to December 11th. Then to focus on Christmas I added selections from Isaiah and Luke to end the year.
The third column is the Old Testament, minus Psalms and Proverbs which are read separately in the first column. The Old Testament readings need the most explanation. I have chosen to follow the Jewish canonical ordering of: Law – Prophets – Writings. This was the ordering that Jesus himself would have known. The exact ordering I have chosen is slightly different than the standard Jewish canonical order and I found it in Dominion and Dynasty: A theology of the Hebrew Bible by Stephen Dempster.
The flow of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) begins with the Law (Pentateuch; 5 books of Moses) which establishes God’s covenant relationship with Israel. Israel’s pre-history, including creation, the flood, and the Patriarchs is included within the Pentateuch.
The story then continues with what are called the Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings) which give the history from entering the land of Canaan according to God’s promise and power to being expelled from that same land also by God’s promise and power. Within that story is also the story of Israel’s kingship and God’s promise of a dynasty to David. It should be noted that the story of the Former Prophets concludes with a touch of hope in the midst of tragedy – Jehoiachin, king of Judah, is released from prison while still in exile (2 Kings 25:27-30; Cf. Jeremiah 52:31-34). This hints that the story of God and his people is not yet over, that the promises to Abraham and David have not been abandoned.
The storyline next turns to the Latter Prophets - the ones we usually think of when we think of the prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and the 12 “minor” prophets. “Minor” refers to their length, not their content. Many of the prophets are closely connected with the exile: some in anticipation (ex: Isaiah, Habakkuk), some in the moment (ex: Jeremiah, Ezekiel) and some in the restoration (ex: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi). The exile is central to the story as Israel was unfaithful to the covenant despite God’s patience and calls for repentance. The exile itself was an act of covenant faithfulness by God; however, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is still the “compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness” (Exodus 34:6) so the exile was not the end of Israel’s story.
Fittingly Jeremiah is first (Dempster; in the standard Jewish ordering Isaiah is first) since he lived and prophesied during the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile from the land. Jeremiah speaks powerfully of Israel’s guilt but even more so of God’s continued mercy shown in his promises of restoration, “”When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart’” (Jeremiah 29:10-13).
This hope for a new heart is picked up in Ezekiel who declares that God will “remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws” (Ezekiel 36:26-27). Isaiah is next, speaking so clearly of Jesus as the suffering servant who gives his life for the sins of the people and also picturing the hope of a redeemed world. The 12 follow, each adding their voice to the story of Israel’s hardheartedness and God’s determined faithfulness to complete the outworking of creation: “They will be my people and I will be their God.”
The third section of the Hebrew Bible is called the Writings. This section contains several different types of writing in both prose and poetry, the most notable being the wisdom literature which give directions for righteous living in an unrighteous world. These works include Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Lamentations. There are also historical works which resume the storyline - Ruth, Daniel, Esther, Ezra-Nehemiah, and 1 and 2 Chronicles. Notice that the Hebrew Bible ends with 1 and 2 Chronicles which speaks a word of hope and comfort to post-exilic Israel reminding them once again of God’s covenant faithfulness and plans to work through his people despite their history of unfaithfulness. Second Chronicles concludes with Cyrus issuing the proclamation to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Israel is still under foreign dominion but once again we see that God is not yet done with his people and that there is hope for the story to continue…and it does in the New Testament with the gospel of Matthew and the birth of the Messiah! Notice how tightly the New Testament is tied to the Old Testament in Matthew chapter 1.
Reading the Bible daily and reading through the entirety of Scripture every year has been a well of living water to me. Every morning I look forward to reading God’s word, meditating on it, and responding in prayer. I hope this explanation of the reading plans helps you grasp God’s great story and that this year you can also deepen your fellowship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit through daily Bible reading.
You might want to consider reading like eating – three times a day. Read one column in the morning and pray to begin your day, read another at lunchtime, and the last in the evening. This may make it more manageable than trying to read it all and pray the first thing in the morning.
“Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD” (Deuteronomy 8:2,3).
Blessings,
Pastor Dan
Foster Care and Adoption in Massachusetts
This past Sunday we had the privilege of hearing from Liz Joyal, from MARE (Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange). To hear what she said, check out the video of her message.
Right now, over 1200 children in Massachusetts need adoptive homes.
There are over 8600 children in foster care in Massachusetts. These children have been removed from their families, through no fault of their own, due to neglect or potential hard. Many of these children will be reunited with their birth family, others will be adopted by relatives or foster parents, but over 1200 of them have no prospect for a permanent family.
The children of Massachusetts all deserve safe, permanent families in which they can thrive. This is one of the greatest social issues of our time and the Church can lead the way in the solution.
Please do not hesitate to contact Liz Joyal at the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange (MARE) – lizj@mareinc.org – to receive more info about the process of adoption from foster care. You can also visit MARE’s website at www.mareinc.org to view profiles of waiting children.
Daily Prayer
Dear CBC community near and far,
We began an online daily prayer initiative on Palm Sunday, April 5, 2020 and have been praying daily ever since! I am writing to inform you of this unexpected and wonderful ministry and to invite you to join us. The schedule is below, along with the designated leader/facilitator. Over the six months we have had many different leaders, including alumni.
The meetings are all 30 minutes long; we pray twice on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. You will notice that some of the prayer meetings are thematic; others are simply based on the inspiration of the Spirit through preparation of the leader. All have been a source of encouragement and strength. Please join us! You can sign up for the prayer Zoom link on our website.
Blessings,
P Dan
"I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the LORD, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest till he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth" (Isaiah 62:6-7).
Sunday 10 am - Melaku Z.
Monday noon - P. Shtem (praying through the Psalms)
Monday 8:30 pm - P. Dan (local partner focus)
Tuesday noon - Bill M.
Wednesday noon - open (P. Dan filling in)
Wednesday 8:30 pm - Melaku Z. (world mission focus)
Thursday noon - Rahel Z. (children and youth focus)
Friday noon - Mollie B.
Friday 8:30 pm - Paul C.
Saturday noon - open (P Dan filling in)
Fall Discipleship Updates
Dear CBC community,
How I miss seeing all of you in person! I am thankful for Zoom given the restrictions of the pandemic but I dearly miss gathering together for worship, ministry, and service. Nevertheless, we are continuing to press forward and I wanted to give you a brief update on our discipleship plans as we begin this unusual fall semester.
Child discipleship: Rahel has been working with families and children online since March and is continuing to do an outstanding job despite the obstacles. Throughout the summer she has offered a program on Saturday afternoons but now as we begin the fall the children's discipleship program (Kids Club and GIG) will take place on Sunday mornings between 10:00 and 10:30. And we have added a short "Children's Corner" component to our 10:45 worship service to keep our children and families before the congregation for everyone's encouragement and sense of community. Children grow too fast to be out of sight from us! Rahel also leads us in prayer for our children and youth at the Thurday noon prayer meeting.
Youth discipleship: Likewise, Pastor Shtem has been reaching out to our youth since March and only took a short break at the end of the summer. This fall he is working on a plan to for the youth that includes a monthly large Zoom gathering and also smaller in-person meetings. The details are still being worked out as our youth settle into their unsettled school routines and we will keep you posted.
Adult discipleship: I have been involved since March in two new adult discipleship ministries. The first is our online prayer ministry. Praying together is a very practical means of discipleship as we grow by praying and listening to the prayers of others. The prayer ministry has also provided for leadership development as each session is led by a different person. We welcome anyone and everyone to pray with us whenever they can! We pray at noon Monday through Saturday; at 8:30 pm Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; and at 10:00 am Sunday.
The second new ministry is learning how to reach out and disciple using the Discovery Bible Study (DBS) method. Pastor Shtem, Kim Thorburn, and I went through a five week training this summer and are offering that training to the church beginning in October.
We are also continuing with our adult discipleship groups but I have been slow to organize these because of the prayer and DBS ministries. However, there are still several group functioning and new groups will be formed whenever a person offers to facilitate/lead. Groups meet mostly online so the logistics are simple but leadership is still needed to make a group happen.
Finally, I am preaching this fall from the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel's message seems particularly relevant given what is happening in our society and world but, of course, God's word is always relevant and I hope that the Lord will also use these messages to "equip us for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:17).
Online discipleship: I would be remiss not to include Karen's work, which includes administrating our Zoom meetings, editing and posting our services on our website, and promoting the church through the website and social media. Her work is essential in reaching out, and in supporting and promoting everything listed above!
Your discipleship: One thing about this fall that isn't different from any other - we need help in each of these areas of ministry. Please prayerfully consider how you might grow by serving this fall: "From Christ the whole body, joined and help together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work" (Ephesians 4:15).
Your brother in Christ,
Pastor Dan